Denver’s bounty of large, well-funded, close-to-home parks earned it seventh place in The Trust for Public Land’s annual ParkScore ranking, climbing from 17th in last year’s index. The rankings, released Thursday, scored the park systems in 60 U.S. cities.

The trust’s park analysts weigh park access and the percentage of residents within a 10-minute walk of a park, as well as park size and the amount of city acreage dedicated to parks.

Denver offers 3.9 parks and playgrounds per 10,000 residents, the fifth-highest among the 60 cities the trust studied. Nearly 84 percent of Denver residents live within a half-mile of a park, and the city spends $124 per resident on parks.

Aurora scored the highest for cities debuting on the 2014 park scorecard, ranking 10th. The nation’s 56th-largest city, Aurora has 2.4 parks and playgrounds per 10,000 residents, and 85 percent of its residents live within 10 minutes of a park.

When analysts started counting Denver’s “Learning Landscapes” school playgrounds — which are open to the public when school is out — the city climbed 10 spots in the rankings, tying with Sacramento, Calif., for seventh.

Denver’s parks contributes to the city’s quality of life, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock said in a statement.

“The city is working hard to ensure Denver’s open spaces are accessible, growing and a continued source of pride,” Hancock said. “Denver will continue to support the very active, healthy lifestyle of the people who live, work, and play here by providing accessible parks and outdoor recreational spaces for all our neighborhoods.”

Jason Blevins covers tourism, mountain business, skiing and outdoor adventure sports for both the business and sports sections at The Denver Post, which he joined in 1997. He skis, pedals, paddles and occasionally boogies in the hills and is just as inspired by the lively entrepreneurial spirit that permeates Colorado's high country communities as he is by the views.

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